Monster
by Lady Chitose
Summary: She both loved him and hated him for being so charming. ::Cavernshipping, Steven/Phoebe::


A/N: I'm invading all the kink memes. This is the third one for which I've written and I'm working on one for a fourth. Fun stuff.

The prompt was "To Steven, Phoebe was a friend who definitely came with benefits.

I'd like to see Phoebe in [one-sided] love with Steven, but if not that's cool. Either implications of sex or just outright smut is fine, I just need this pairing to... exist. "

So I thought, you know, Phoebe doesn't get enough love, and I love me some Steven. I thought they would look pretty cute together. Also it was a good chance to write some unrequited love/friends-with-benefits kind of relationship. Yay for fluffy angst/angsty fluff.

Game-universe because I'm not familiar with the manga (at the moment). Enjoy!

* * *

She clearly remembered that day, the day she finally tried out to be in the Pokemon League. All her hours of relentless training on Mt. Pyre were worth the effort when she finally made her way to Ever Grande City. The area reminded her of home, in a way, being so high above everything else with a breathtaking scenery. She knew she was making the right decision, but she couldn't help but be nervous because of the impending battles. Her knowledge on her opponents was very limited. All she knew, besides that she'd be battling four other trainers to determine the order of the Elite Four, was that there was some boy, the son of the president of the Devon corporation, who was known for traveling and collecting rocks. No one mentioned anyone else when they found out Phoebe was trying out for the Elite Four, so she assumed this would be a very skilled trainer. Nevertheless, she was confident enough in her abilities to not be too worried about anything.

Until she laid eyes on her first opponent. At the opposite end of the arena stood a striking young man in a suit. This had to be the person others told her about. When he looked at her, she noticed how beautifully his eyes gleamed, just like her Sableye's. He had a confident, composed aura about him, something magnetic that drew her it like a fly to a lamp. Never before had she been so taken aback just by looking at someone. It was then that all of the strategies she had implanted into her mind flooded out, which said something as Phoebe was normally very focused.

The first time they battled, she lost, partly due to his type resisting hers and partly because she was so captivated by his presence. Steven politely shook her hand at the end and assured her she was talented despite the loss. Ironically she ended up defeating Sidney later on, despite him having the type advantage as the Dark-type trainer. It just proved to her that with enough concentration, she could accomplish anything. Her grandmother had instilled that value in her. But instead of being determined to win against Steven in a battle, she was determined to win his heart. She wasn't sure how she would, at that moment, but she'd think of something.

Concentrating on battling became increasingly difficult as she spent a growing amount of time thinking about the Steel-type trainer. Eventually she decided just doing her job well might be enough to catch his attention, and then she could go from there. On her free days she returned to Mt. Pyre to train even more vigorously than she did prior to joining the Elite Four. Her efforts paid off when Steven visited her one day. Just the sight of him entering her room made her face flush, but hopefully it wasn't horribly noticeable.

"You've been doing well lately. Very impressive for someone your age," he said. She was the youngest Elite Four member, but obviously he didn't think less of her for being slightly less experienced. "Keep it up."

He flashed a smile and walked out before Phoebe could even think of anything to say.

That was all it took for Phoebe to develop a crush on Steven. She decided to take some time to get to know him better by visiting him during their free time at night. She would stop by his room just to "say hi", flirtatiously battering her eyelashes and showing just enough of her long, tanned leg while leaning against the door frame. Eventually her efforts paid off, because one night it seemed he finally picked up on all the hints she dropped and invited her into his room.

Admittedly she had imagined their first kiss being a lot more slow and romantic than it actually was. She felt like a silly teenage girl with her fantasies of the perfect setting, just outside the Elite Four building with the perfect view of the waterfall and the lush fields. Instead, Steven slammed the door, then pinned her against it and forced their mouth to meet in a frantic union. It was by no means unwelcome, by having the Steven, the poised champion of Hoenn Steven, kissing her with such eagerness was unexpected. Once the shock subsided, she returned the fervor, and from there things became more heated.

She also pictured their first time together – if she was lucky enough to ever have the fantasy become a reality - being more slow and romantic than it was. She wanted to feel like a princess being taken by her knight in shining armor, as silly and cliched as that sounded. Yet the frantic frenzy with the removing of clothes and exchanging of kisses and tangling of limbs was invigorating. The twinkle in his eyes as he smiled and planted kisses on her neck was all the romance she needed at that moment.

Their trysts continued frequently, following the same pattern for the most part. With every touch and kiss and thrust, Phoebe found her infatuation grow deeper into the depths of love. She knew how illogical it was to fall in love with someone just by sleeping with them secretly, but she couldn't help it. It was more than sex, to her anyway.

After a short reign as the champion, Steven resigned and gave his position to his friend Wallace, the then-gym leader of Sootopolis City. Phoebe and the rest of the Elite Four found out at the last minute. No one else seemed as alarmed by the news as she was. Why didn't he tell her? He had to have planned this. Maybe he didn't want her to be upset or distracted by his disappearance. Maybe he didn't want her to try to convince him to stay so he could go off to do other things with his life. No matter the reason, she couldn't help but feel her heart sinking in her chest. She did her best to conceal her disappointment whenever she saw Steven. There was a chance that if Phoebe spent too long talking to him or even looking at him, she'd break down into tears and cling to him, and she still had enough pride not to do that.

Wallace left his gym only a week or two after everyone else knew he would be replacing Steven. He was obviously just as talented and graceful as Steven, but Phoebe felt like he was missing something. She was probably just biased. Everything carried on normally when Steven left, but Phoebe found herself more distracted by his absence than his presence. She still held up fairly well against the challengers, but now she felt like a part of her was missing.

It was probably foolish. They were never in a real relationship, as much as she wanted to think they were. She was his friend, his toy, something to have fun with and to distract him from his busy schedule. Nothing more, nothing less. She decided this was largely due to his duties in the Elite Four, among other things. He probably just didn't want to be tied down at the moment. Steven, both inside and outside the bedroom, was a gentleman. If he wanted to date her, he would have courted her the way like the way he did sometimes in her daydreams.

Considering this, Phoebe suddenly felt stupid for ever thinking they could have something more. She was too hopeful, too convinced the risks would be worth the eventual reward, too addicted to stop going back when she first had a taste of him. And she loathed herself for it. Her emotions had never gotten the better of her like this before. If only they would just vanish like Steven had not too long ago, although it felt like an eternity to Phoebe. He was out of sight (for the most part, as she did have a few pictures of them together in he room) but more present in her mind than ever. It was driving her crazy.

Phoebe thought she'd completely lost any sanity left when she saw Steven standing at her door one day. Was she hallucinating? She walked up to him to see. He looked exactly the way she remembered. She wanted to touch him just to be sure, but she knew that phase was over.

"Hi," she said, at a loss for any other words.

"Good to see you again," he said. She knew it was in a purely platonic way, but her heart still wanted it to be in a romantic way. Her vocal chords froze just as she wanted to speak. "I brought you something."

Phoebe's heart jumped. Had Steven really come all the way back here just to give her something? Surely he could have had someone send it for him. She was flattered that he would take his precious time just to see her. Maybe there really was something, even the smallest bit, between them that transcended friendship.

He fished around in his pocket and pulled out a gorgeous turquoise stone. It immediately reminded her of his eyes. She stared at it admiringly as if it was a diamond ring. After waiting a moment for her to take it, Steven finally took her hands and placed the lustrous stone in them.

"I found this while traveling in Sinnoh," he said. "Catch a female Snorunt and this will make it evolve into a Froslass. It would a great addition to you team."

"Thank you," Phoebe finally said. "So how have you been?"

"Busy." He smiled, but in a bittersweet kind of way. "I've been traveling to all kinds of new places. It's very enjoyable, but I do miss being here." He looked at her deliberately as he said the last sentence.

_Please stay,_ Phoebe wanted to tell him. _Just for one more night._ Deep down she knew that wasn't the best idea, but she had been craving his company ever since he left. Just like the first time they lay together that night, she got a taste of him again and was dying for more.

"It was good to see you again." She wondered if he brought something for every other member of the Elite Four or just her. Perhaps she was better off not knowing.

"And you as well." He placed a hand on her shoulder and gently kissed her forehead. Feeling his lips on her again went shivers through her spine. Steven was so passionate and considerate, but in away he was a monster. A monster in that she wanted to hate him for being so charming and such a tease, but she just _couldn't_. He stole her heart and her brain and consumed them. It was his fault she couldn't think straight any more.

They said goodbye once again and Phoebe returned to her training. Now that she had a physical reminder of him, it would be even more difficult to stop thinking about him. She made a mental note to travel to Shoal Cave to catch a Snorunt so she could get rid of that stone. The stone that resembled his eyes all too well. The stone that would distract her even more, if she could possibly be any more distracted.

Instead the stone remained on her desk. It gave the otherwise dim room a glimmer, akin to the glimmer of hope she had that one day they would be together.


End file.
